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| 5 | 5 | | 2023 -- H 5649 |
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| 6 | 6 | | ======== |
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| 7 | 7 | | LC000869 |
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| 8 | 8 | | ======== |
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| 9 | 9 | | S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND |
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| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023 |
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| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
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| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- PRIMARIES FOR ELECTION OF DELEGATES TO |
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| 16 | 16 | | NATIONAL CONVENTIONS AND FOR PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE |
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| 17 | 17 | | Introduced By: Representatives Kislak, Dawson, Potter, Handy, Sanchez, Cotter, |
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| 18 | 18 | | Speakman, Donovan, McGaw, and Boylan |
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| 19 | 19 | | Date Introduced: February 15, 2023 |
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| 20 | 20 | | Referred To: House State Government & Elections |
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| 21 | 21 | | |
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| 22 | 22 | | |
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| 23 | 23 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
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| 24 | 24 | | SECTION 1. Section 17-12.1-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled "Primaries 1 |
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| 25 | 25 | | for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is hereby 2 |
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| 26 | 26 | | amended to read as follows: 3 |
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| 27 | 27 | | 17-12.1-2. Number of delegates to be elected — Method of election. 4 |
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| 28 | 28 | | (a) At each primary there shall be elected for each congressional district of this state the 5 |
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| 29 | 29 | | number of delegates and alternates that shall be determined by the national committee of the party 6 |
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| 30 | 30 | | and certified to the secretary of state not later than the first Tuesday in January preceding the 7 |
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| 31 | 31 | | primary by the state committee of the party. The method of election of candidates for delegate shall 8 |
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| 32 | 32 | | be in accordance with party rules certified to the secretary of state by the chairperson of the state 9 |
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| 33 | 33 | | committee on or before the first Tuesday in January of each year a primary is to be held pursuant 10 |
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| 34 | 34 | | to this chapter. 11 |
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| 35 | 35 | | (b) The presidential preference primary shall be conducted using ranked choice voting as 12 |
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| 36 | 36 | | set forth in this chapter. The notice provided by the chairperson of a state committee under 13 |
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| 37 | 37 | | subsection (a) of this section shall indicate whether the party prefers the presidential preference 14 |
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| 38 | 38 | | primary tabulation to occur on a winner-take-all basis in accordance with § 17-12.1-17(b) or on a 15 |
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| 39 | 39 | | proportional basis in accordance with § 17-12.1-17(c). The notice shall further indicate how 16 |
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| 40 | 40 | | delegates are to be allocated and on what geographical basis delegates are to be allocated, whether 17 |
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| 41 | 41 | | statewide, by congressional district, by other geographic unit, or a combination thereof. If the party 18 |
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| 42 | 42 | | |
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| 43 | 43 | | |
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| 44 | 44 | | LC000869 - Page 2 of 10 |
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| 45 | 45 | | requests tabulation occur on a proportional basis, the chairperson shall indicate what the applicable 1 |
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| 46 | 46 | | threshold for receiving delegates in the presidential preference primary will be. If a party fails to 2 |
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| 47 | 47 | | specify how to tabulate ballots, the presidential preference primary election for that party shall be 3 |
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| 48 | 48 | | tabulated on a statewide winner-take-all basis in accordance with § 17-12.1-17(b). 4 |
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| 49 | 49 | | (c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to preclude a political party from allocating 5 |
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| 50 | 50 | | delegates according to its own rules for allocating such delegates. 6 |
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| 51 | 51 | | SECTION 2. Section 17-12.1-4 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled "Primaries 7 |
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| 52 | 52 | | for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is hereby 8 |
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| 53 | 53 | | amended to read as follows: 9 |
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| 54 | 54 | | 17-12.1-4. Presidential candidates. 10 |
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| 55 | 55 | | (a) Any person seeking the endorsement of a national political party for which a primary 11 |
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| 56 | 56 | | is being held shall, during the ninety-fourth (94th) through and including the ninety-sixth (96th) 12 |
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| 57 | 57 | | day preceding the presidential preference primary being held, provide written notification to the 13 |
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| 58 | 58 | | secretary of state of his or her intention to run in the presidential preference primary. When the 14 |
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| 59 | 59 | | deadline falls on a Saturday, said written notification may be filed with the secretary of state on 15 |
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| 60 | 60 | | that Saturday until noon (12:00) p.m. The notification shall include the candidate’s name and 16 |
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| 61 | 61 | | address and a statement affirming their eligibility, under the laws and Constitution of the United 17 |
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| 62 | 62 | | States, to serve, if elected, in the office of President of the United States. The notification shall also 18 |
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| 63 | 63 | | include the name and contact information of the designee authorized by the presidential candidate 19 |
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| 64 | 64 | | to act in his/her stead in Rhode Island. 20 |
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| 65 | 65 | | (b)(1) Upon receipt of the notification referred to in subsection (a) of this section, the 21 |
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| 66 | 66 | | secretary of state shall, by six o’clock (6:00) p.m. on the same day, prepare petition papers for 22 |
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| 67 | 67 | | candidates who are eligible to serve in the office of President of the United States, clearly marked 23 |
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| 68 | 68 | | with the candidate’s name, party designation, and the office the candidate seeks; provided, 24 |
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| 69 | 69 | | however, that for notifications filed on a Saturday deadline by noon (12:00) p.m., petition papers 25 |
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| 70 | 70 | | shall be prepared by two o’clock (2:00) p.m. on that Saturday. 26 |
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| 71 | 71 | | (2) The petition papers of a candidate for president shall be signed, in the aggregate, by at 27 |
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| 72 | 72 | | least one thousand (1,000) eligible voters and shall be submitted on or before four o’clock (4:00) 28 |
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| 73 | 73 | | p.m. in the afternoon of the eighty-second (82nd) day before the presidential preference primary to 29 |
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| 74 | 74 | | the local board of the city or town where the signers appear to be voters, and the petition papers 30 |
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| 75 | 75 | | shall be checked, processed, and certified to the secretary of state by the local boards before four 31 |
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| 76 | 76 | | o’clock (4:00) p.m. in the afternoon of the sixty-ninth (69th) day before the presidential preference 32 |
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| 77 | 77 | | primary. When nomination papers have been duly certified by the appropriate local boards of 33 |
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| 78 | 78 | | canvassers, they shall be conclusively presumed to be valid, unless written objections to them are 34 |
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| 79 | 79 | | |
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| 80 | 80 | | |
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| 81 | 81 | | LC000869 - Page 3 of 10 |
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| 82 | 82 | | made as to the eligibility of the candidate or the sufficiency of the nomination papers or the 1 |
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| 83 | 83 | | signatures on them. All objections shall be filed with the state board of elections by four o’clock 2 |
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| 84 | 84 | | (4:00) p.m. on the next business day after the last day fixed for local boards to file nomination 3 |
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| 85 | 85 | | papers with the secretary of state. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the secretary 4 |
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| 86 | 86 | | of state from disqualifying a candidate based on the determination of the secretary of state that the 5 |
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| 87 | 87 | | nomination papers or the signatures on them are invalid or insufficient. 6 |
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| 88 | 88 | | (c) The decision of the state board shall be rendered not later than four o’clock (4:00) p.m. 7 |
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| 89 | 89 | | on the sixty-third (63rd) day before the presidential preference primary and shall immediately be 8 |
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| 90 | 90 | | certified by the state board to the secretary of state. 9 |
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| 91 | 91 | | (d) If any candidate for presidential nomination does not qualify for ballot placement, the 10 |
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| 92 | 92 | | names of delegates committed to this disqualified presidential candidate, who are otherwise 11 |
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| 93 | 93 | | qualified, shall appear on the ballot in accordance with party rules. 12 |
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| 94 | 94 | | (e) If any candidate whose name has been announced as a presidential nominee does not 13 |
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| 95 | 95 | | thereafter wish his or her name to appear on the ballot, the candidate shall, at least sixty-three (63) 14 |
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| 96 | 96 | | days prior to the date for the primary, file an affidavit with the secretary of state stating his or her 15 |
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| 97 | 97 | | name may not be placed on the ballot and the secretary of state shall not place that candidate’s 16 |
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| 98 | 98 | | name on the ballot. Said affidavit must be signed by the presidential candidate or his or her designee 17 |
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| 99 | 99 | | on file with the office of the secretary of state. Names of delegates committed to the withdrawn 18 |
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| 100 | 100 | | such candidate, who are otherwise qualified, shall appear on the ballot in accordance with party 19 |
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| 101 | 101 | | rules. 20 |
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| 102 | 102 | | (f) If any candidate whose name already appears on the ballot as a presidential nominee 21 |
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| 103 | 103 | | chooses to withdraw from consideration prior to the date established for the presidential preference 22 |
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| 104 | 104 | | primary election, that candidate shall file a signed letter of withdrawal with their national and state 23 |
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| 105 | 105 | | party chairpersons in compliance with any applicable party rules that may exist governing the 24 |
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| 106 | 106 | | timing, procedures, or substance of candidate withdrawals or suspensions. The candidate further 25 |
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| 107 | 107 | | shall file an affidavit with the secretary of state stating that the candidate is a withdrawn candidate 26 |
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| 108 | 108 | | and wishes to be treated as an inactive candidate in the tabulation conducted under § 17-12.1-17. 27 |
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| 109 | 109 | | Such affidavit must be signed by the presidential candidate or the candidates designee on file with 28 |
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| 110 | 110 | | the office of the secretary of state. 29 |
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| 111 | 111 | | SECTION 3. Section 17-12.1-8 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled "Primaries 30 |
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| 112 | 112 | | for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is hereby 31 |
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| 113 | 113 | | amended to read as follows: 32 |
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| 114 | 114 | | 17-12.1-8. Presidential preference primary. 33 |
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| 115 | 115 | | (a) On the same date and at the same time as the election of delegates to national 34 |
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| 116 | 116 | | |
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| 117 | 117 | | |
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| 118 | 118 | | LC000869 - Page 4 of 10 |
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| 119 | 119 | | conventions, as provided in § 17-12.1-1, there shall be held a presidential preference primary for 1 |
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| 120 | 120 | | each political party at which each party voter shall have one vote with the opportunity to vote rank 2 |
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| 121 | 121 | | his or her preference preferences for his or her choice for one person which candidate should to be 3 |
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| 122 | 122 | | the candidate presidential nominee of his or her party for president of the United States. The voter 4 |
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| 123 | 123 | | shall also have the ability to rank “uncommitted” among his or her preferences. 5 |
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| 124 | 124 | | (b) The secretary of state shall place on the ballot the name of all persons qualified as 6 |
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| 125 | 125 | | candidates for presidential nominee as provided in § 17-12.1-4, and who have not filed with the 7 |
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| 126 | 126 | | secretary of state the affidavit as provided in § 17-12.1-4(e). The lists of candidates for delegate 8 |
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| 127 | 127 | | shall be placed on a separate portion of the ballot and shall be grouped by and clearly indicate 9 |
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| 128 | 128 | | which candidate for presidential nominee approved the individual’s candidacy, and shall list under 10 |
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| 129 | 129 | | the name of each candidate for presidential nominee, arranged by lot, the names of all candidates 11 |
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| 130 | 130 | | for delegates to a national convention who submitted the approval of the candidate for presidential 12 |
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| 131 | 131 | | nominee as set forth in § 17-12.1-7. All other candidates for delegates to a national convention shall 13 |
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| 132 | 132 | | be listed on the ballot, arranged by lot, as uncommitted, unless otherwise specified in party rules. 14 |
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| 133 | 133 | | SECTION 4. Section 17-12.1-9 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled "Primaries 15 |
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| 134 | 134 | | for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is hereby 16 |
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| 135 | 135 | | amended to read as follows: 17 |
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| 136 | 136 | | 17-12.1-9. Voting for nominees and delegates — Designation of winning delegates. 18 |
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| 137 | 137 | | (a) Each voter shall vote rank, within that voter’s party presidential preference primary, his 19 |
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| 138 | 138 | | or her preferences among for the presidential nominees of that voter’s choice and or may express 20 |
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| 139 | 139 | | among those preferences a ranking that voter’s choice for no nominee in a space provided and 21 |
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| 140 | 140 | | designated “uncommitted.” 22 |
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| 141 | 141 | | (b) Each voter shall vote, within that voter's party delegate election primary and for any or 23 |
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| 142 | 142 | | all of the number of elected delegates allocated to Rhode Island by the respective national 24 |
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| 143 | 143 | | committees. 25 |
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| 144 | 144 | | (c) The number of delegates and the designation of the winning delegates shall be 26 |
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| 145 | 145 | | determined pursuant to the rules of the political party filed with the secretary of state as provided 27 |
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| 146 | 146 | | by this chapter. 28 |
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| 147 | 147 | | SECTION 5. Section 17-12.1-11 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled 29 |
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| 148 | 148 | | "Primaries for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is 30 |
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| 149 | 149 | | hereby amended to read as follows: 31 |
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| 150 | 150 | | 17-12.1-11. Form of ballot. 32 |
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| 151 | 151 | | (a) The order on the ballot, subject to final determination of any objections filed with the 33 |
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| 152 | 152 | | board of elections and the removal of said individual(s) by the secretary of state post-lot, of the 34 |
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| 153 | 153 | | |
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| 154 | 154 | | |
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| 155 | 155 | | LC000869 - Page 5 of 10 |
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| 156 | 156 | | presidential nominees and delegates and the uncommitted delegates shall be chosen by lot under 1 |
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| 157 | 157 | | the direction of the secretary of state. 2 |
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| 158 | 158 | | (b) Individuals committed to a particular presidential candidate or uncommitted shall 3 |
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| 159 | 159 | | appear in a manner so that the candidates for delegates shall be readily identified with the 4 |
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| 160 | 160 | | presidential candidate to whom they are committed or shall appear in a manner that clearly shows 5 |
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| 161 | 161 | | they are uncommitted. 6 |
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| 162 | 162 | | (c) No person shall appear on the ballot as a candidate for delegate more than once. 7 |
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| 163 | 163 | | (d) There shall be nothing on the ballot to indicate or suggest any political party 8 |
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| 164 | 164 | | endorsement. 9 |
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| 165 | 165 | | (e) The secretary of state shall prepare and arrange the ballot for use in the primaries 10 |
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| 166 | 166 | | authorized in this title, which shall include, as to the candidates for delegates, the person to whom 11 |
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| 167 | 167 | | the candidates are committed and any other information and instruction that the secretary of state 12 |
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| 168 | 168 | | shall deem necessary. 13 |
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| 169 | 169 | | (f) The ballot shall allow voters to rank five (5) qualified presidential candidates in order 14 |
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| 170 | 170 | | of choice. 15 |
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| 171 | 171 | | SECTION 6. Section 17-12.1-12 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled 16 |
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| 172 | 172 | | "Primaries for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is 17 |
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| 173 | 173 | | hereby amended to read as follows: 18 |
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| 174 | 174 | | 17-12.1-12. Definitions. 19 |
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| 175 | 175 | | For the purposes of this chapter the following terms have the meaning indicated as follows: 20 |
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| 176 | 176 | | (1) “Active candidate” means any candidate who has not been eliminated during tabulation 21 |
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| 177 | 177 | | or is not a withdrawn candidate within the meaning of § 17-12.1-12(12). 22 |
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| 178 | 178 | | (2) “Highest-ranked active candidate” means the active candidate assigned to a higher 23 |
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| 179 | 179 | | ranking than any other active candidates on a ballot. 24 |
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| 180 | 180 | | (3) “Inactive ballot” is a ballot that does not count for any candidate for any of the reasons 25 |
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| 181 | 181 | | given in § 17-12.1-17(e). 26 |
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| 182 | 182 | | (4) “Overvote” means an instance in which a voter has ranked more than one candidate at 27 |
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| 183 | 183 | | the same ranking order. 28 |
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| 184 | 184 | | (1)(5) “Political party” is defined as provided in § 17-1-2(9). 29 |
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| 185 | 185 | | (6) “Ranking order” means the number available to be assigned by a voter to a candidate 30 |
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| 186 | 186 | | to express the voter’s choice for that candidate. The number “1” is the highest ranking order, 31 |
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| 187 | 187 | | followed by “2” and then “3” and so on. 32 |
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| 188 | 188 | | (7) “Round” means an instance of the sequence of voting tabulation beginning with § 17-33 |
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| 189 | 189 | | 12.1-17(b)(1) for winner-take-all selection of delegates or § 17-12.1-17(c)(1) for proportional 34 |
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| 190 | 190 | | |
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| 191 | 191 | | |
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| 192 | 192 | | LC000869 - Page 6 of 10 |
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| 193 | 193 | | selection of delegates. 1 |
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| 194 | 194 | | (8) “Skipped ranking” means a voter has left a ranking order unassigned but ranks a 2 |
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| 195 | 195 | | candidate at a subsequent ranking order. 3 |
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| 196 | 196 | | (9) “Threshold for receiving delegates” means the amount of votes necessary for a 4 |
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| 197 | 197 | | presidential candidate to receive delegates in a presidential preference primary election conducted 5 |
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| 198 | 198 | | in accordance with § 17-12.1-17(c). 6 |
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| 199 | 199 | | (2)(10) “Uncommitted” means a candidate for delegate not approved by, obligated, or 7 |
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| 200 | 200 | | committed to any particular presidential contender. 8 |
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| 201 | 201 | | (11) “Undervote” means a ballot that does not contain any candidates at any ranking in a 9 |
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| 202 | 202 | | particular contest. 10 |
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| 203 | 203 | | (12) “Withdrawn candidate” means any candidate who filed all requisite letters or 11 |
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| 204 | 204 | | affidavits required under § 17-12.1-4(f). 12 |
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| 205 | 205 | | SECTION 7. Section 17-12.1-14 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-12.1 entitled 13 |
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| 206 | 206 | | "Primaries for Election of Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is 14 |
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| 207 | 207 | | hereby amended to read as follows: 15 |
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| 208 | 208 | | 17-12.1-14. Recount. 16 |
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| 209 | 209 | | (a) Upon application, the state board of elections shall conduct a recount for a presidential 17 |
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| 210 | 210 | | candidate or delegate for a winning candidate when there is a two hundred (200) or less vote 18 |
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| 211 | 211 | | difference in the final round of tabulation between the losing candidate or delegate and the winner. 19 |
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| 212 | 212 | | (b) Upon application, the state board of elections shall conduct a recount for a delegate for 20 |
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| 213 | 213 | | a winning presidential candidate when there is a two hundred (200) or less vote difference between 21 |
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| 214 | 214 | | the losing delegate and the winner. 22 |
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| 215 | 215 | | (c) A recount under subsection (a) or (b) of this section Said recount shall be conducted by 23 |
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| 216 | 216 | | re-reading the programmed memory device or devices and comparing the results and totals obtained 24 |
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| 217 | 217 | | at such recount with the results and totals obtained on election night. 25 |
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| 218 | 218 | | (b)(d) The state board shall have the authority to adopt rules and regulations to implement 26 |
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| 219 | 219 | | and administer the provisions of this section. 27 |
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| 220 | 220 | | SECTION 8. Chapter 17-12.1 of the General Laws entitled "Primaries for Election of 28 |
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| 221 | 221 | | Delegates to National Conventions and for Presidential Preference" is hereby amended by adding 29 |
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| 222 | 222 | | thereto the following section: 30 |
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| 223 | 223 | | 17-12.1-17. Ranked choice voting tabulation. 31 |
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| 224 | 224 | | (a) In any state-administered presidential preference primary election for President of the 32 |
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| 225 | 225 | | United States conducted using ranked choice voting, each ballot shall count as one vote for the 33 |
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| 226 | 226 | | highest-ranked active candidate on that ballot. Withdrawn candidates shall be treated the same as 34 |
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| 227 | 227 | | |
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| 228 | 228 | | |
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| 229 | 229 | | LC000869 - Page 7 of 10 |
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| 230 | 230 | | candidates who have been eliminated from tabulation. A ranking of “uncommitted” shall be treated 1 |
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| 231 | 231 | | the same as a ranking containing a candidate. Each round proceeds sequentially as described in 2 |
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| 232 | 232 | | subsection (b) or (c) of this section, as applicable. 3 |
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| 233 | 233 | | (b) If a party awards delegates to a single candidate on a winner-take-all basis, tabulation 4 |
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| 234 | 234 | | shall proceed as follows: 5 |
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| 235 | 235 | | (1) If two (2) or fewer active candidates remain, then tabulation is complete. Otherwise, 6 |
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| 236 | 236 | | tabulation proceeds to subsection (b)(2) of this section. 7 |
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| 237 | 237 | | (2) The active candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, votes for the eliminated 8 |
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| 238 | 238 | | candidate are transferred to each ballot’s next-ranked active candidate, and a new round begins 9 |
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| 239 | 239 | | with subsection (b)(1) of this section. 10 |
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| 240 | 240 | | (c) If a party awards delegates to multiple candidates on a proportional basis, tabulation 11 |
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| 241 | 241 | | shall proceed as follows: 12 |
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| 242 | 242 | | (1) If the vote total of every active candidate is above the party’s threshold for receiving 13 |
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| 243 | 243 | | delegates, then tabulation is complete. Otherwise, tabulation proceeds to subsection (c)(2) of this 14 |
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| 244 | 244 | | section. 15 |
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| 245 | 245 | | (2) The active candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, votes for the eliminated 16 |
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| 246 | 246 | | candidate are transferred to each ballot’s next-ranked active candidate, and a new round begins 17 |
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| 247 | 247 | | with subsection (c)(1) of this section. 18 |
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| 248 | 248 | | (d) If two (2) or more candidates are tied with the fewest votes and tabulation cannot 19 |
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| 249 | 249 | | continue until the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, then the candidate to be eliminated 20 |
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| 250 | 250 | | shall be determined by lot. Election officials may resolve prospective ties between candidates prior 21 |
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| 251 | 251 | | to tabulation after all votes are cast. The result of any tie resolution must be recorded and reused in 22 |
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| 252 | 252 | | the event of a recount. 23 |
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| 253 | 253 | | (e) An inactive ballot does not count for any candidate. A ballot is inactive if any of the 24 |
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| 254 | 254 | | following is true: 25 |
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| 255 | 255 | | (1) It does not contain any active candidates and is not an undervote. 26 |
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| 256 | 256 | | (2) It has reached an overvote. 27 |
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| 257 | 257 | | (3) It has reached two (2) consecutive skipped rankings. 28 |
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| 258 | 258 | | (f) An undervote does not count as an active or inactive ballot in any round of tabulation. 29 |
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| 259 | 259 | | (g) When the secretary of state certifies the results of the election, the secretary shall certify 30 |
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| 260 | 260 | | the results of each round tabulated pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) of this section, as applicable, 31 |
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| 261 | 261 | | along with any other information required under § 17-12.1-18, to the state chairperson and the 32 |
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| 262 | 262 | | national committee of each political party that had at least one candidate on the state-administered 33 |
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| 263 | 263 | | presidential primary election ballot to allocate national delegate votes in accordance with the party's 34 |
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| 264 | 264 | | |
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| 265 | 265 | | |
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| 266 | 266 | | LC000869 - Page 8 of 10 |
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| 267 | 267 | | state and national rules. 1 |
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| 268 | 268 | | 17-12.1-18. Results reporting. 2 |
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| 269 | 269 | | (a) The secretary of state shall promulgate rules or guidance to facilitate the release of 3 |
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| 270 | 270 | | unofficial preliminary round-by-round results and unofficial preliminary cast vote records as soon 4 |
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| 271 | 271 | | as feasible after the polls close and at regular intervals thereafter until the counting of ballots is 5 |
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| 272 | 272 | | complete. 6 |
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| 273 | 273 | | (1) Unofficial preliminary round-by-round results shall be clearly labeled as preliminary 7 |
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| 274 | 274 | | and, to the extent feasible, shall include the percent of ballots counted to date. 8 |
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| 275 | 275 | | (2) Unofficial preliminary cast vote records shall be: 9 |
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| 276 | 276 | | (i) Clearly labeled as preliminary and, to the extent feasible, shall include the percent of 10 |
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| 277 | 277 | | ballots counted to date; 11 |
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| 278 | 278 | | (ii) Published online in a publicly accessible, electronic format; and 12 |
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| 279 | 279 | | (iii) Identifiable by precinct to the extent such identification can be provided consistent 13 |
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| 280 | 280 | | with the need to maintain voter privacy. 14 |
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| 281 | 281 | | (3) In adopting rules or guidance under this subsection, the secretary of state shall consult 15 |
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| 282 | 282 | | with and allow for input from local election officials, and national and state party representatives. 16 |
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| 283 | 283 | | (b) In addition to any other information required by law to be reported with final results, 17 |
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| 284 | 284 | | the secretary of state shall make public: 18 |
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| 285 | 285 | | (1) The total number of votes each candidate received in each round of the official 19 |
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| 286 | 286 | | tabulation, including votes for withdrawn candidates; 20 |
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| 287 | 287 | | (2) The total number of ballots that became inactive in each round because they did not 21 |
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| 288 | 288 | | contain any active candidates, reached an overvote, or reached two (2) consecutive skipped 22 |
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| 289 | 289 | | rankings, reported as separate figures; and 23 |
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| 290 | 290 | | (3) The cast vote records in a publicly accessible, electronic format and in a manner 24 |
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| 291 | 291 | | identifiable by precinct to the extent such identification can be provided consistent with the need 25 |
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| 292 | 292 | | to maintain voter privacy. 26 |
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| 293 | 293 | | (c) The secretary of state shall provide round-by-round results for each party on the 27 |
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| 294 | 294 | | geographical basis or bases identified in the notice submitted by the chairperson of that party’s state 28 |
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| 295 | 295 | | committee pursuant to § 17-12.1-2. 29 |
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| 296 | 296 | | 17-12.1-19. Rulemaking authority. 30 |
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| 297 | 297 | | The secretary of state shall have the authority to promulgate whatever rules, regulations, 31 |
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| 298 | 298 | | and procedures are necessary to implement this chapter. 32 |
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| 299 | 299 | | SECTION 9. Nothing in this act shall be construed or implemented in a manner that would 33 |
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| 300 | 300 | | effectively foreclose the use of or substantially increase the cost of adopting a ballot structure or 34 |
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| 301 | 301 | | |
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| 302 | 302 | | |
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| 303 | 303 | | LC000869 - Page 9 of 10 |
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| 304 | 304 | | voting system compatible with fusion voting. For the purposes of this act, fusion voting is an 1 |
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| 305 | 305 | | electoral system that allows two (2) or more political parties to indicate their endorsement of a 2 |
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| 306 | 306 | | single candidate for office on the ballot. 3 |
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| 307 | 307 | | SECTION 10. If any provision of this act, or the application of any provision of this act to 4 |
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| 308 | 308 | | any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this act and the 5 |
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| 309 | 309 | | application of its provisions to any person or circumstance shall not be affected by the holding. 6 |
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| 310 | 310 | | SECTION 11. This act shall take effect upon passage. 7 |
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| 311 | 311 | | ======== |
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| 312 | 312 | | LC000869 |
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| 313 | 313 | | ======== |
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| 314 | 314 | | |
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| 315 | 315 | | |
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| 316 | 316 | | LC000869 - Page 10 of 10 |
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| 317 | 317 | | EXPLANATION |
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| 318 | 318 | | BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL |
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| 319 | 319 | | OF |
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| 320 | 320 | | A N A C T |
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| 321 | 321 | | RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- PRIMARIES FOR ELECTION OF DELEGATES TO |
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| 322 | 322 | | NATIONAL CONVENTIONS AND FOR PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE |
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| 323 | 323 | | *** |
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| 324 | 324 | | This act would establish the ranked choice voting for Rhode Island Presidential primaries 1 |
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| 325 | 325 | | and provides for new sections on ranked choice voting tabulation and results reporting. 2 |
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| 326 | 326 | | This act would take effect upon passage. 3 |
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| 327 | 327 | | ======== |
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| 328 | 328 | | LC000869 |
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| 329 | 329 | | ======== |
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